BMW

BMW along with Audi and Mercedes have experienced large sales increases in South Korea in the first quarter, each by at least 25% - faster growth than even in China. Foreign brands have managed to secure 41% of Korea’s market for premium vehicles (up from 28% two years ago). A big part of the reason is the lower duties on European imports - down to just 3.2% (from 8%) after a trade agreement was signed in 2011. Next year will see these taxes eliminated for most cars. These gains for the German luxury makes come at the expense of Hyundai and Kia, which count on sales of luxury vehicles in their home market for much of their earnings. Lee Tack Young says Hyundai’s vehicles are oversized, overpriced gas guzzlers. So he opted for a more modest alternative: a BMW 528i. “I was looking for a quality car that wasn’t too big,” said Lee, president of Cosmetic Engineering, a packaging-machinery maker near Seoul. The 65-year-old’s last seven cars were all Korean, starting with a Hyundai Excel in the 1980s. However, this time he chose his 71 million won ($64,000 dollar) BMW over an 85 million won ($76,000 dollar) K9 Kia. BMW is planning to introduce a range of new models in Korea and the sales outlook is good enough for the company to have plans on constructing a 70 billion won ($6.27 million dollar) test track in the city of Incheon where customers can test drive BMWs at high speeds. This would be the first such facility for BMW in Asia. BMW’s upcoming South Korean track will undoubtedly draw comparisons to “NorthKoreaRing” - the Nurburgring replica to be built in North Korea. P.S. the prior sentence is just a joke referencing a recent April Fool’s joke.

Tesla has had quite a good run lately. Their stock has nearly tripled in the past six months; the Model S has been showered with accolades including Motor Trends 2013 Car of The Year, Automobile Magazines 2013 Automobile of The Year and Consumer Reports recently awarded it the highest score of any car they have ever tested. Think about that for a minute. Consumer Reports has been testing cars for over seventy five years, they now test about 80 cars per year and the Model S achieved a score of 99 out of 100 which is the highest any car they have tested has ever scored. Ladies and gentlemen, the electric car has arrived. I’ve had the chance to take a Model S on a short drive before, but last week I had a brand new 85kWh Model S for the afternoon, courtesy of friends Phil & Nancy Blackwood. The Blackwoods were in BMW’s MINI-E program as I was but elected not to lease an ActiveE as I did; citing the need for more range than the 94 mile EPA rated ActiveE would deliver. Like me, a few months after they got their MINI-E back in 2009, the Blackwoods installed a solar array on the roof of their house. As was the case for me, it only took a few months of driving electric to convince the Blackwoods that they would be driving electric from then on. Once you experience that revelation, the decision to go solar is an easy one. Having the ability to make your cars fuel by capturing sunshine is just too good to pass up and many other electric vehicle owners have done exactly what the Blackwoods and I have. So wanting to drive electric but needing more than 100 miles of range the choice was clear; they would buy a Tesla Model S. The Model S is available in two battery sizes. The 60kWh battery is EPA rated at 208 miles of range and the 85kWh battery is rated at 265 miles. The 60kWh version starts at $71,070 and the 85kWh costs $81,070. There is also a performance version which costs $96,070. They all qualify for a $7,500 federal tax credit which is not included in the above pricing. Some states also have additional incentives for zero emission cars. For example I live in NJ and electric cars are tax exempt so that would account for an additional $5,000 to $7,000 of savings over a comparably priced gasoline car. The car I drove was an 85kWh, (non performance version) and with options cost about $86,000 before the $7,500 federal tax credit. When Motor Trend tested the 85kWh performance version it achieved a 0-60 time of 3.9 seconds. The non-performance version such as the one that I drove has a 0-60 time of 5.4 seconds. I’ve driven cars as fast as this, but the experience of driving an electric car this fast is really surreal. Having 325lb-ft of instant torque at your disposal at any speed, combined with the ultra quiet and vibration-less cabin is hypnotizing. All you want to do is punch the accelerator at every opportunity. It handles like a sports car, partly because of the low center of gravity. The battery pack which is the heaviest component of the car is located beneath the passenger compartment, and employs the same modern body-on-frame architecture that the BMW i3 will use. I believe this is the best way to properly engineer an electric car and I am very happy BMW agrees. Internal combustion vehicles can never have such a large percentage of the vehicle’s weight at or even slightly below the axle line and this is a great advantage for improved handling. Once inside the Model S it’s apparent the cabin is very spacious for a car of its size. Cargo space is also plentiful and in addition to the rear hatch area there is a large front trunk or as Tesla calls it, a “frunk”. This is also due to the dedicated electric vehicle architecture. Since the entire drivetrain is below the passenger compartment, there is more interior and cargo space available. Again, the i3 will share this advantage and BMW has said the interior volume of the i3 will be nearly as much as in a 3-Series, even though the car is much smaller. However the i3 will not have

One of the highlights at the 2013 M Festival was the now annual M Corso. A day before the 24 hour of Nurburgring race, the “Green Hell” becomes available to 200 M Festival visitors who celebrate the iconic race track in their own M cars. While two years ago we toured the “Green Hell” aboard the BMW 1M, this time we were behind the wheel of a BMW M6 Gran Coupe, without a doubt of the most polarizing M cars at the event. Prior to the start of the M Corso parade, BMW fans from around the world roamed around to see the latest and greatest M cars, some of them quite unique. From E30 M3s to Z8 Roadsters, 1Ms and M3 GTS models, the 2013 M Corso lineup was one of the most interesting ones to date. A few cars that stood out the most were a Lime Green BMW M6 Coupe, a 3.0 CSL two Frozen Red M3 and M5 models, and plenty of heavily modded 1Ms and M3s. Shortly after the typical track briefing we were lined up to begin our journey around the famous Nordschleife. The 200 cars caravan was met with enthusiasm by side spectators that decided this year to get closer to the cars on the track and express their admiration for the M brand. The friendly hand-waving, horn-honking parade lap at very slow speed, and while some of us were aching for some high-speed chases, the effect on the fans and the drivers was the one we all expected: a bond tied together by the love for ///M and their cars. For someone going through this parade the first time the emotions can be quite high, especially if you factor in the waving, clapping and smiling that came from a warm crowd eager to see some action. Many fans joined the cars on the track and at times we had to safely avoid the human blocks formed on the track, making this experience even more rewarding and memorable. Basically during the 30 minutes ride we had the opportunity to not only chat with race fans peaking inside our car but also to rev up the engine, as requested by many fans. Two years later and the M Corso doesn’t stop to amaze us and we are already looking forward to a new experience in 2014, but for now enjoy the exclusive and comprehensive photo gallery. The article 2013 M Corso – Photo Gallery appeared first on BMW BLOG

New videos featuring the new 2014 BMW 5 Series LCI facelift model - sedan, touring and GT models (exterior, interior and driving footage).

Enjoy a mega gallery from the Welt 4.0 friends reUnited meet at the BMW Welt.

Shortly after introducing the Competition Package for the 2014 BMW M5 and M6, the Bavarian company released official pricing information for this optional feature. Priced from $7,300 for the F10 M5, the new pack provides a power boost from 560hp to 575hp for the stock 4.4-liter V8 powerplant. Besides the power hike, the German company [...]The post BMW releases official pricing for the new Competition Package appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

After South Korea made BMW’s life easier by passing certain laws to help reduce the price of European vehicles, another law in Asia might do the opposite. China is set to implement a new law that will increase the taxes of luxury cars. Said law will affect cars that wear a price tag of over [...]The post China might be taxing luxury cars appeared first on BMWCoop | BMW Blog, BMW News, BMW Reviews.

Yes, a comparison of the M235i against a 435i M Sport or potential M435i would be a more appropriate comparison, but there are no revealed photos of the 435i M Sport (and no photos of a potential M435i). This is just to provide our members with a comparison of the 2 Series vs 4 Series’ general shapes and looks. The angles on the spy photos also don’t match up exactly, but we will post another visual comparison once we have official photos for both models.

Pricing and ordering guide for the 2014 M6 and 6 Series coupe, gran coupe, and convertible (effective June 1, 2013).

Aston Martin of New England held its annual Cars & Coffee two Saturdays ago. It was a gorgeous day out in Boston, which brought out all the nice cars. Several BMWs were in attendance, including a Lime Rock Park M3 and Brilliant White Individual F10 M5.